NephTalk

“The number one question I get from patients is, 'How can I change my diet to improve my kidney function or slow progression of kidney disease?' I can do the medical therapy in terms of other comorbid and disease management. But honestly, I don’t have the knowledge base that my colleagues in nutrition have. New Day's registered dietitians provide ongoing medical nutrition therapy and that’s a game changer.”

Dr. Randolph Chen, MD, Nephrologist Medical Advisor, Satellite Healthcare

Rory Pace, MPH, RD, CSR, FAND

Director of Nutrition Services, Satellite Healthcare General Manager, New Day Nutrition

“The big shift is to try to keep people off of dialysis. If we can move upstream and better manage and provide care for CKD patients, chronic kidney disease patients; slow the progression, and then make sure they have optimal starts, and encourage more transplantation and home dialysis, then we're going to improve patient outcomes and we're also going to be saving costs. Both of those together is a win-win.”

Dr. Kay Ghista, Vice President

CKD and Transplant Care Management, Satellite Healthcare

“We always have to ask ourselves, ‘What is of value to the patient? What does the patient need?’ The Kidney Care Connection will answer these needs, not by telling them what we can offer, but them telling us what they need to live well. That is revolutionary. That is transformative.”

Dr. Brigitte Schiller, MD, Chief Medical Officer, Satellite Healthcare

with Dr. Wael Hussein, MD, Vice-President, Research and Development, Satellite Healthcare

Christopher Springmann: You have said, Dr. Schiller, and I'm quoting here, "One way of thinking about how to receive the best healthcare possible is to ask ourselves, 'What would we want for our loved ones?'" With the Kidney Care Connection model, you've said, you're very confident that this will be a better care model, more attention, more compassionate and calming. That's quite a mandate.

Dr. Schiller: We're an ambitious and well-intended organization and have been for 40-plus years. I'm glad you bring this up because this is, actually, the mantra of Satellite Healthcare. We lead as a caring dialysis organization. That is our differentiator. Approaching it from this very personal aspect makes a better care model, and we have brought the experience of several nephrologists, many healthcare-experienced professionals, to this concept of the Kidney Care Connection.

CS: Dr. Hussein, I've read several of your quotes in which you discuss starting dialysis, and I'm quoting here: “ . . . where new patients are thrown into the mix, overwhelmed with the educational needs. And you've quoted patients who describe starting dialysis—well, they have used the word "terrifying." Is it your intent that the Kidney Care Connection will help alleviate fears and anxieties that patients have expressed in the past?

Dr. Hussein: The current dialysis model in the center is based on fast and efficient and has to be safe delivery of hemodialysis care, and that means a very rapid turnaround and getting the patients on and off very quickly. That might be okay for somebody who's used to the type of care that they're getting. For somebody who's new, coming in for the first time, patients describe it to us that it's a very fearful situation, that they feel like their life might be ending. They don't know what to expect. You do not want to start that period of your life in that situation, in that scenario. The Kidney Care Connection is something similar to a transitional care unit but in a more advanced way, and that is to have more staff dedicated to that period of your life.

(From program trailer). Are Nephrology practices ready for the new world of Value-Based Care or VBC? On the new NephTalk you’ll learn that VBC is the way medical reimbursement will be determined in the future.

Tell me about the responses you're receiving from potential early adopters of the NNA, the National Nephrology Alliance?

As we've talked to several dozens of groups across the nation, there have been some consistent themes, and the word "Crossroads" has come up probably in every conversation.

Crossroads?

Every practice we've talked to has brought that up that they see the transition from fee for service to value- based care. They've all said that the path forward is uncertain for them, and they're looking for partners, for options.

That’s Ravin Bisla, Senior Vice President of Growth Initiatives for Satellite Healthcare and Chief Development Officer for the National Nephrology Alliance.

Where do you envision the NNA in the next two to five years?

To a large size where we can start to advocate for our patients at a policy level. So that we can say, we have 200-300 physicians.

You're talking about developing clout and influence.

That's an accurate way to assess that. In creating NNA, part of what we're saying is that we can join together and have a much, much louder voice by acting as one.

“Empathy and simply listening are sometimes the most important tools and skills that we can employ with our patients. It's about the patient and not about us or our goals. Even if our goals are for the patient's best well-being and health, we need to remember the patient is at the heart of what we do.”

Emily Watson, MSW, LCSW; Director of Social Work, Satellite Healthcare

“The push to grow Satellite Healthcare throughout the US is greater than ever. The big reason for ‘Why now?’ is our new Executive Team. Satellite has a solid footprint on the West Coast, a presence in Texas, Tennessee, and New Jersey. With my experience on the East Coast, it was a natural fit.”

Dan White

Vice President of Business Development

Satellite Healthcare

“There was a mix of excitement, worry, nervousness, because my dad, again, will be giving me the gift of life, so you can’t ask for more. Just being on dialysis for about eight months and then getting to this [transplant] moment is just a great milestone to achieve.”

Rochelle Dispo, Marketing Communications Coordinator for Satellite Healthcare - and kidney transplant recipient from her donor dad

Yes, it’s win, win, win. It’s win for Satellite. It’s win for the volunteers. And it’s win for the patients and the community as a whole. We are trusting volunteers to bring their unique perspectives, their time and talents to the work that we do. And that increases our capacity not only to help more people, but to have that multiplicity of perspectives.

Christopher Springmann: That’s Paula Allen, Satellite Healthcare’s Volunteer Program Specialist, who is joined by Emily Watson, Satellite’s Healthcare’s Director of Social Work.

CS: Yes. It’s good to have both of you on NephTalk. Thanks.

Emily Watson: ‘Morning. Thanks for having us.

Paula Allen: Thank you, Christopher.

CS: Can you tell me how the idea for bringing volunteers on board at Satellite Healthcare was initiated and where this program is going?

EW: Satellite, being a non-profit, is in a unique stance. Leadership at our organization has long been interested in differentiating Satellite from the rest of the crowd in more ways than just our great quality. Looking at how we can serve our patients a little bit more one-on-one is where the idea of having a Volunteer Corps came from. We spent some time working on it, actually, last year, in 2020, in the middle of a pandemic and realized that we need special knowledge. We were gifted the opportunity to look for someone to bring on board to do that. And that’s how we found Paula.

“Living organ donors, in giving the gift of life, is truly love and compassion in action. They are our heroes. There’s no bigger gift that I can think of. It’s just incredible.”

Christopher Springmann: That’s Dr. Kay Ghista, Satellite Healthcare’s Vice-President of Chronic Kidney Disease and Transplant Care Management

CS: Kay, thank you so much for joining us today on NephTalk.

KG: Hello, Chris. It's a pleasure to be here. Thank you.

CS: We'll be discussing the journey to kidney transplantation, what Satellite is doing to make transplant a reality for patients, and how this relates to the Executive Order on Advancing American Kidney Health. You can't talk about kidney transplantation in America, and of course dialysis, without talking about numbers, facts, and statistics. The two numbers that really pop out to me are that every year, 100,000 people start dialysis. That's an enormous number, isn't it?

KG: Yes, it is. And tragically, 20 percent die within a year, Chris, and almost 50 percent of die within five years. That's a reality.

“Emotions and connecting with somebody is as much about what you say as how you nonverbally communicate, how your body and your face connects or transmits your feelings to someone else. I’m trying to show them that I’m smiling with just my eyes. Smiling by really connecting through visual contact, through eyes . . . became one of the main ways we can connect with our patients.”

Emily Watson, MSW, LCSW; Director of Social Work, Satellite Healthcare